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E. W. CRITTENDEN, OF PITTSBRG, PENNSYLVANIA. Letters Patent No. 70,969, dated November 19, 11867; antedated November 9, 1867.

IMPROVEMENT IN MANUFACTURING BRIGKS.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: i

Be it known that I, E. W. Cni'rTENDEN, of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Manufacturing Bricks; and that the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, hereinafter referred to, forms a full and exact specification of the same, wherein have set forth the nature and principles of my said improvements, by which my invention may be distinguished from all others of a similar class, together with such parts as I claim and desire to have secured to me by Letters Patent.

This invention relates to ccrtain new and useful improvements in manufacturing bricks, designed for operation on a large scale, and more especially with a view of dispensing with the hand labor and expensive manipulations hitherto required in the process of-brick making. l I

The invention consistsiirst, in an improved means for crushing or pulverizing the clay, and bringing it to a proper plastic state to be moulded or compressed into bricks; second, in an improved means for moulding and compressing the clay into bricks.v 4In the accompanying sheets of drawings-` l Figure I, Sheet No. 1, is a side view of my invention, showing a few parts insection. t

Figure 2, a detached vertical section of the clay-pulveriz'ing 'or crushing mechanism, taken in the line :u x, iig. 1.

Figure 3, a sectionvof a. carrier pertaining to the same, taken in the line yy, fig. 1.

FigureA, a detached view of a part pertaining to the moulding and pressing mechanism.

Figure 5, Sheet No. 2, a plan or top view of the drying-kiln and one of the cars thereof.

Figure 6, a plan or top 'view of the whole device; and

Figure 7 a section of the mould-wheel, taken in the linee z, iig. 1.

Similar letters ,of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A represents anv elevated hopper, into which the clay is shovelled, and underneath this hopper there are placed three rollers, B B B, arranged as shown clearly in tig. 2,'and operated by means of belting or'gear from the driving-shaft. These rollers B B B are all iluted longitudinally, s'o as to have corrugated surfaces, and they rotate in the direction indicated by the arrows in iig. 2, the clay passingl down between them, as indicated bythe red arrows, the crushed clay falling into a spout, C, which conducts itrinto ak cylindrical rotary screen, D, which is slightly inclined, the pulverized clay passing through the screen, while gravel and coarse foreign substances are discharged from the depressed end of the screen, and pass o' at one side through an inclined spout, E. The clay which passes through thel screen D falls upon an endless apron, F, which works-over rollers a a, and moves in 'the direction indicated by the arrow in g. 1, and underneath an evener, Gr, which serves to'spread the clay uniformly over" the surface of the apron F, said' evencr having an oblique front, the foremost end of which is at the side ofthe apron where the cla-y falls in greatest quantity. The

clay thus evenly spread upon the apron F, passes underneath a box, H, having a perforated bottom. Low` pressure steam is admitted into this box, and passes through the perforated bottom in jets upon the pulverized clay, moistening it and giving it a requisite consistency suitable foi-moulding and pressing. Into these per' forations I desire to havefixedfhollow points, three or more inches long, and from thirty tol fifty in number,

which penetrate the clay upon theapron, passing nearly to the bottom. As the apron moves forward -it brings the clay in contact with these points, which act on the clay like a barrow or cultivator, stirring it up- At the same time the steam which is constantly escaping from their lower openings, warms and dampens the clay with-' out converting it into mortar, and thus fits it for pressure.

The moistened clay, as it is discharged from the apron F, falls into the buckets b of an ordinary elevator, I, each bucket being of sufficient capacity to hold as much clay as is required for making a brick. The buckets Z1 discharge their clay into a hopper, J, placed on the kupper part of a framing, K', which contains the moulding and pressing mechanism. This mould-ingand pressing mechanism consists of the following parts L is a wheel, firmly keyed on a horizontal shaft, M, and composed of two rims, c c', betwecnwhich the moulds N are placed, the rim c being provided with arms d, connected to a hub which is keyed onithe shaft M. The moulds N have a radial position in the wheel L, as shown clearly in g. '1, and in each mould there is fitted a plunger, O, and

these plungers have pins e projecting from them, which pass through slots f in the. arms d, and have springs g bearing upon them, which have a tendency to keep the plungers at the inner ends of the moulds, as will be fully understood by referring to iig. 1. Each plunger O is formed with a shoulder,'h, below or at' the inner ends of the `moulds N, to admit of a fixed wheel, P, in the framing K, acting against the plungers, serving as a stop for the same', and also, with the rotation of wheel L, giving a slight movement outward to the plungers, the wheel l? being placed in such a position relatively with the shoulders h to effect that` result. Between the rims c c of the wheel L there are secured, by pivots z', arms Q, th'e outer or free or disengaged ends lof which have lips or projections j, to fit intorthe olter ends of the moulds N. 'llhe arms Q are provided at one side with a hub, lr, having a {iat surface for springs R to bear against, and hold them in the position shown in iig. 4, and the pivots or shafts z' of the arms have on 4one end of them a cam, l, of segment form, shown clearly in lig. l, and these cams, as the wheel L rotates, come in contact with pins tn m in the framing K, the pins -m throwing the arms Q over towards the outer ends or orifices of the moulds N, so that thelips or projectionsj will enter the s ame, (see g. 1,) the pins in throwing the arms back in a contrary direction, so that the lips j will be out from the moulds, as shown in dotted lines in tig. 1; The pins m throw the lips or projections j' into the moulds just previous to the shoulders h of the plungers O coming in contact with wheel P, and just as the shoulders t come in contact with the wheel l?, the arms Q pass under a roller, s, in the framing K, and the clay in the moulds N is thereby compressedin consequence of the lips or projections- 7' of the arms Q being forced into the moulds to their fullest extent, and the plungers O forced slightly outward in consequence of the shoulders h coming in contact with the wheel P. j

If necessary or desired, the wheel P may have motion given it bym'eans of gearing or other mechanism in order to exert an additional pressure upon the clay in the mould.' As the'arms Q pass from underneath the roller s, they are thrown outward, so that their lips or projectionsj will be out from the moulds, and areheld in position by the springs R, previously alluded to, and the shoulders of the plungers O then come in contact Awith a xed cam, T, which force the compressed clay out 'from the moulds upon plates U, placed on an endless car-rier, V.' This carrier V may be of thin sheet metal or other suitable strong flexible material, perforated with holes, at suitabledistances apart,`to receive pins o at the under sides of the plates U. Bythis means, the plates U are held on the carrier. The pressed clay or unburnt bricks are sanded from a box, V, which is attached to an arm-,10, the `latter projecting from the framing "Kl The plates U aredesigned to `receive each a plurality of bricks, Ythe plate being placed on the carrier V, over the rollers', near the wheel L, a'nd takenoff from the carrier over the roller s. at the opposite extremity of the. same. y

It will beseen. from the `above description that it is essential that thc elevator I-, mould-wheel L, and carrior V have arbitrary movements, for a bucket, b, must be ready to fill the moulds N as they.pass up in range with the hopper J,'and the carrier V must move with such a speed as to allow the bricks to bc discharged upon the plates U side byV side.v Y

I would remark that this invention is applicable to the manufacture of peat, and for moulding and pressing clay for the manufacture of tiles and other articles.` v

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as pew, and desire to secure lby Letters Patent, is

, 1. The luted or corruwgated rollers B B B, a rotary screen, D, and endless carrier or apron F, arranged substantially as and for the purpose set forth.A

2. The tempering or moistening of the pulverized clay by jets oflow-pressure steam from a steam-box, H, substantially as Vshown and described, -f t 3. .The evener Gr, the rotary screen D, and endless carrier or apron F, arranged substantially as and for thepurpose specified.

' .4. The moulds N in the wheel L, in combination with the plungers O and the arms Q, operated in the manner substantially as herein shown and described. v

5 The elevator I and endless carrier V, when used in combination withnI rotary mould-wheel, substantially as and for the purpose specified. i l ,i

' E. W. CRITTENDEN.

Witnesses:

A.. S. NICHOLSON, Gsonen ALLEN.

LA l 

